Have you ever tried to eat cocoa powder? Now, I am not talking about the powder they use when they make chocolate milk. I am referring to straight up cocoa powder, that you use for baking. If you haven’t, I assure you it is disgusting!
One day my mom and I were baking in the kitchen and the recipe we were using called for cocoa powder. As my mom pulled out a container with a picture of chocolate, labelled "cocoa powder," my mouth started to water. I thought, "Yes, I need to eat this!" I reached my hand into the powder about to take handful for a sampling. That was when my mom warned me that I would not enjoy the taste of cocoa powder. Can you guess what I did? I looked at her, shrugged my shoulders, and put the cocoa powder in my mouth.
Sure enough, that stuff was GROSS! My eyes were watering from the bitter taste before I swallowed my pride, and admitted she was right. I spit out the powder onto a napkin in defeat.
(If you follow the link below you can see that I am not the only person that has made this horrible mistake.)
At this point, you might be wondering how this relates to having a relationship with Jesus. A lot like my mom warning me not to eat the cocoa powder because she knew I wouldn't like the end result, the Bible gives us lots of guidance on ways to steer away from circumstances that could harm us or someone else (as we draw closer to Jesus.) These notes of advice aren’t there to teach us how to be saved. They aren’t there to make our lives boring. They are there because God truly cares about our wellbeing and the wellbeing of others around us. God's Word protects us and is for our best.
I will put it another way. Let’s say I purchase a brand new computer. I begin working on that computer, but I don’t read the guide about how that computer works. So I just start clicking around and doing random things to the computer. I notice it is a little dirty, so I bring it to the sink to wash it. I might not know that submersing my computer in water will destroy it... but the person who created that computer does!
It is the same for us. God created us. He knows us. And He understands (even more than we do) what is and isn’t good for us. When I chose not to listen to my mom, I found that I regretted that decision very quickly. If I clean a computer my own way without the directions, I will regret that decisions too. And if we don’t listen to what God tells us to, we will find ourselves in situations that leave us more broken than we already are. In the Bible, Proverbs 12:1 says, “To learn, you must love discipline; it is stupid to hate correction.”
A proverb is a short saying that states a general truth or piece of advice. The book of Proverbs is an entire book of the Bible that contains lots Proverbs from God. That is super cool to know that there is a book in the Bible that has lots of tidbits of wisdom that we can use. If you have some extra time today, take a few minutes reading in the book of Proverbs to see what you will learn. Whether you choose to do that or not I encourage you to listen to the guidance that the Holy Spirit gives you, because God won’t lead you astray.
QUESTIONS:
1) Do you ever feel frustrated a leader in your life (like a parent, teacher, youth group worker, etc.) for giving advice? If so, why do you think that is? Is there anything you can do to be more open to listening to that wisdom?
2) Who is easiest for you to take advice from? Does this person look to God or someone or somewhere else for his/her source of wisdom?
3) Check out Proverbs 9. Where does wisdom begin? Based on that, what are some practical ways you can build my life around wisdom?
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